FAS all ready has a handful of custom models for you to customize your game. Be sure to check out the Released Assets subforum for more info and to leave feedback.
In a FAS Input Forum post, Oelund gave insight to the future of the medic skill. Oelund plans for future RCs plans to add first person animations when a medic treats a person.
"Like if you surture somebody you'll see your weapon holster, and a hemostat would appear, he'd then take a surture needle and wrap the thread around the hemostat backwards two times in preparation for a instrumental knot, and grap the needle with the hemostat. both would then holster and the weapon would reappear," he described. While this sounds like it would take a while and slow down gameplay, he says it would only take two to three seconds.
Oelund continues saying that treating people would still be instant on the target; also there would not just be one animation for every medic ability. Other animations would be, "opening a pack of quikclot for medic1 skills, unrolling a Samsplint for treating broken legs."
Mirsky has uploaded a video on YouTube featuring the reload animation of the M24.
DysPatch has also said that he would like to see more of these videos, possibly as a show case reel of all FAS weapon reload animations along with sound.
Schmung has updated his developer's blog with information about the technical side of the design process as an artist for FAS. While there is a lot of big flashy stuff that makes the main page, such as his gorgeous M79 skin, other aspects of his work are not as appreciated. Prop models for example are necessary for FAS but don't attract as much attention as weapon models.
Prop models are models in maps such as the deuce and land rover. Much of Schmung's work lately has been with making level of detail models of many of these props. Level of Detail models are models that replace the more detailed models the farther you get away.
"The version you see up-close might be 7000 or so triangles," Schmung said but, "view it from a distance and what you are actually seeing is a model with 700 triangles." (Schmung made it a point that these numbers are made up to illustrate how LoD works.) This also applies to textures as well.
These level of detail models are for all models in FAS, not just models in maps. When you select a lower texture quality in a Source game, what you are doing is selecting the maximum level of detail of the textures. For example, "when you set your model and texture settings to low, typically you will only see the last LOD even if you are right next to it," DysPatch said.
Though while this system has obvious benefits for low end PCs, Naota points out that it isn't always a clear benefit. "We really could save a good 10-20% of our overall weapon texture footprint by doing away with these absurd view model mipmaps," Naota said. He continues with stating that his first person texture models do not have mipmaps because it saves a lot of disk space and it ensures that the texture will always look right.
You may have noticed that the Sako 95 doesn't exactly look like your standard Sako 95. This isn't due to lack of experinced modelers, but according to Naota it was, "a personal vendetta against generic weapons attempting to further their lack of aestheic appeal by completely knocking off their parent firearm." All changes with the Sako 95 are intentional and included:
-Aftermarket pistol grip -Black Valmet plastic magazines (as opposed to olive/dried snot green) -The blatantly AK-47-esque upper and lower hand guards of the Rk. 95 have been removed entirely, replaced with an adjustable vertical grip attached to a custom rail system. -The front sight assembly at the end of the gas tube is that of the Sako Rk. 62, rather than the Rk. 95, and includes a bracket for a carry strap on the left side. -The flash hider is the distinctive Sako Rk. 62/76 version which features a bayonet lug, rather than the fully cylindrical Rk. 95 version. -Attachment mount plates can be found on the left side of the weapon.
StealthSilver is all ready a great texture artist, but now he has also expanded into modeling as well. His first major project is the M1A2 Abrams tank which is displayed in his developer's journal.
The model is still undergoing some revisions but he encourages people to post and offer constructive criticism.
If you noticed a few clipping issues with the weapons and player models in the lastest news update, this is more of an engine limit than a technical one. According to Oelund, "buttstock clipping is almost unavoidable because the animations are done in 9 way blending." Nine way blending is nine animations blended to show the direction the player is facing. This allows more more natrual animations most of the time, but some times the animations are blended half between two animations such as when you look straight up, down, ext.
Oelund states this is not a big problem with most weapons, but a weapon like the M4 with a small stock it is more noticable. The alternative is to, "move the gun away from the shoulder so that its not in direct contact at any time, though that would also look weird."
